Defensively, it's fairly close although LeBron still has an advantage. On the ball, Durant is arguably better. But off the ball, LeBron is much better. On the ball defense matters most, but it's not enough of a margin to make the defensive argument even.

Rebounding is virtually equal and has been for quite some time.

Passing, LeBron is still much better than Durant and always will be. This doesn't mean Durant is a bad playmaker, as he's definitely above average at the SF at this point, but LeBron will always be better

Scoring, Durant is pretty much better at every single thing except for P&R ball handling. And the gap in scoring is fairly significant as Durant could very well end up the most efficient scorer in NBA history. Plus Durant's scoring comes off of the ball which widens the gap even more.

Shot blocking, Durant is much better on the ball where as LeBron is much better off of it particularly on chase downs. But it's looking like Durant can average 2+ bpg in the future which would double LeBron's maximum.

If you put everything together, LeBron is still the better player by a decent margin. Durant can certainly close this however, and if he becomes an elite defender which most believe he can, then he will probably become the best player in the league.

I would rate them

LeBron 99
Durant 97

#3 player is at a 93 or 94 tops. There is a major gap between these 2 and everyone else. One thing that is seriously understated is Durant's ability to make teammates better by demanding attention off of the ball, something LeBron really doesn't do. You could almost argue that Durant's ability to help teammates off of the ball is near equal to LeBron's ability to help them when he has the ball.

I still think Durant is the better ball handler....That double crossover that Durant put on Bogans I believe at the end of the 3rd quarter against the Nets to get to the rim and finish with that left handed buzzer beater...I don't see Lebron doing stuff like that...He just puts his head down and bulldozes his way to the basket which is what he should as big as he is....I think Durant finishes better in the lane and has a wider array of shots, floaters, step back jumpers, etc...

And dont forget that Durant still has a lot of room to bulk up and get stronger which will make him better in the post and a better finisher than he already is...Also will make him a better defensive player as he'll be able to battle guys in the post and play some PF's since he's so tall for his position..

I still think Durant is the better ball handler....That double crossover that Durant put on Bogans I believe at the end of the 3rd quarter against the Nets to get to the rim and finish with that left handed buzzer beater...I don't see Lebron doing stuff like that...He just puts his head down and bulldozes his way to the basket which is what he should as big as he is....I think Durant finishes better in the lane and has a wider array of shots, floaters, step back jumpers, etc...

And dont forget that Durant still has a lot of room to bulk up and get stronger which will make him better in the post and a better finisher than he already is...Also will make him a better defensive player as he'll be able to battle guys in the post and play some PF's since he's so tall for his position..

Ummm..it DOES matter when you have an elite defender on you and yes its better to go around your opponent rather than go through him, as you're more prone to offensive fouls. Also when you're fatigued and need to break down a guy late in the game, you have a better chance if you can get him off balance and go past him as Durant has shown he's better at doing in the clutch than Lebron has. And if it doesn't matter, then whats the point of anybody debating who's the better ball handler anyway?

First off, Durant isn't as good as LeBron; and, as much as I think Durant has improved, there's still a pretty considerable gap between the two in my opinion. Durant is my favorite player, but I try to avoid talking about him so I won't get classified as a Durant stan, fanboy, etc.

With that said, LeBron is 28 years old (will be 28 in two weeks) and at his peak. You go back and look throughout history, and that's about the age the other all-time greats were at that best; in that 26-30 years old range. LeBron, in my opinion, has a top 10 peak all-time and, when it's all said and done, I believe he'll be considered one of the 5-10 best players of all-time. So, being considered the second best player in the league behind a player of that caliber is nothing to be ashamed of.

And that leads me to this: Kevin Durant, at 24 years old is the second best player on the planet, and has closed the gap between himself and LeBron. At 24 years old, in the early stages of his prime, Durant is already really, really freakin' good; and, scary thing is, he will probably only get even better the next 2-4 years. His legacy ranking will ultimately depend on how many rings he wins but, based on his eventual peak play and talent, I think he can be a top 15-20 player all-time. That's how good I think he's becoming.

Like I already said, he's better this year. If you haven't watched more than a couple or three games, it might not be easy to see, but he's better; and, in my opinion, he may be quite a bit better. I've seen some say him taking a "LeBron" approach to the game is hurting his game and the team. That's bullshit. There's some gaps that have had to be filled after the Harden trade. Westbrook has been great as a facilitator/playmaker, but Durant needs to be a better all-around player (in my opinion) to take that next step towards becoming one of the all-time greats; and it looks like he's on his way.

Turnovers have been a major flaw in his game, and he needs to bring his 3.3 TOPG this year down, but he's been much better at taking care of the ball the last 10 games or so. He was averaging 5.2 TOPG through the first five games of the season, but he's only averaging 2.4 TOPG in the 14 games since. His passing is much improved this year. One thing he's doing is making a concerted effort to get his teammates involved. He's getting a lot of his assists by penetrating and kicking to either Thabo, Martin, or Russ (on rare occasions) for three, or to serge around the FT line or the short corner. He's already starting to "figure it out." He's understanding the importance of helping build the confidence of the role players now, so their confidence will be there in the postseason. Here's a quote from an article that lends credence to that:

Quote:

"(The Heat) didn't win it only because of them (their star trio)," Durant said. "They won it because of the Shane Battiers, the Mike Millers, the Mario Chalmers, the Norris Coles. They won it because of those guys.

"They gave (the role players) confidence from the beginning of the season, and I'm sure being on that stage and having those guys trusting them meant they were able to step their game up. That's the only thing I'm trying to do now."

He's still an incredible scorer. He may not keep up his 51/44/89 season, but I'd be surprised if there's a major fall-off. If you've watched him play this year, you'd know why. He's taking better shots and being stingier in his shot selection, in a good way. He's cut out the unnecessary 2-3 three-pointers he used to take. He's attacking the basket more off the bounce and not settling for as many mid-range jumpers. He's working the mid and high post more frequently, and playing with his back to the basket in certain situations. Obviously he needs improvement in all of those areas, but the fact that I'm already seeing pretty substantial improvements in his all-around game and he's just 24 is a scary thought for the rest of the league.

Defensively, he has more work to do, obviously. However, he's improved as a defender this year. For the most part, I think his on-ball defense has been pretty good, on the perimeter. He still gets worked over due to a lack of strength by the stronger more skilled back to the basket bigs, but his perimeter on-ball defense is improved. I'd like to see him do a better job of not over helping on penetrating and putting himself in a tough spot to closeout on 3P shooters. And even when he's in good position to closeout and contest 3P shooters, he needs to do a better job of getting a hand up and contesting the shot.

As a whole, he's a better player this year. And, as a whole, he'll probably be better next year, and the year after, and the year after. However, there's still a sizable gap between he and LeBron. He'll probably never be better than LeBron until LeBron starts to age and slips a little bit. But, as he's done this year, he can continue to close the gap as he reaches his peak.

Defensively, it's fairly close although LeBron still has an advantage. On the ball, Durant is arguably better. But off the ball, LeBron is much better. On the ball defense matters most, but it's not enough of a margin to make the defensive argument even.

Rebounding is virtually equal and has been for quite some time.

Passing, LeBron is still much better than Durant and always will be. This doesn't mean Durant is a bad playmaker, as he's definitely above average at the SF at this point, but LeBron will always be better

Scoring, Durant is pretty much better at every single thing except for P&R ball handling. And the gap in scoring is fairly significant as Durant could very well end up the most efficient scorer in NBA history. Plus Durant's scoring comes off of the ball which widens the gap even more.

Shot blocking, Durant is much better on the ball where as LeBron is much better off of it particularly on chase downs. But it's looking like Durant can average 2+ bpg in the future which would double LeBron's maximum.

If you put everything together, LeBron is still the better player by a decent margin. Durant can certainly close this however, and if he becomes an elite defender which most believe he can, then he will probably become the best player in the league.

I would rate them

LeBron 99
Durant 97

#3 player is at a 93 or 94 tops. There is a major gap between these 2 and everyone else. One thing that is seriously understated is Durant's ability to make teammates better by demanding attention off of the ball, something LeBron really doesn't do. You could almost argue that Durant's ability to help teammates off of the ball is near equal to LeBron's ability to help them when he has the ball.

Just remember Durant putting on size may not be a good thing. Look at lebron, he lost a bit of speed and athleticism. I don't think Durant would be any better bigger, a guy that size carrying weight would slow him down enormously and put great pressure on his body

I love durant. But the gap is pretty big atm.
You guys have to remember, Durant is a great scorer. But that's all he does better than LeBron. Until he continues to improve his passing, rebounding defending he simply can't be in the conversation. Yea he's a much improved defender. But he still has a way to go. He'll improve though, and certainly has time on his side. But at this stage, right now. LeBron is a much better player

Just remember Durant putting on size may not be a good thing. Look at lebron, he lost a bit of speed and athleticism. I don't think Durant would be any better bigger, a guy that size carrying weight would slow him down enormously and put great pressure on his body

Speaking from experience (and from what other greats said like Reggie Miller when asked about why he didnt put on more weight/muscle) it also messes up your touch / shooting somewhat... It is true because if being a great shooter is about consistency, you want everything to be the same every single time you shoot it, physically & mentally (Ray Allen said this aswell many times)....

Lebron and him are different type of players, but i love both of their games very much.... best of two worlds.... Lebron has something Durant wants in his game very much (he infact openly said after Finals he wanted to be more like Lebron and i quote "A guy that gets triple doubles"), for him to do that he has to improve ballhandling & passing, start initating the offense a la point-forward (which we have seen from him alot this season and he has improved there i think compared to last season) and Durant has something Lebron wants in his game very much (shooting and i think he has improved there, although i question Lebrons FT shooting work strategy )....

I love durant. But the gap is pretty big atm.
You guys have to remember, Durant is a great scorer. But that's all he does better than LeBron. Until he continues to improve his passing, rebounding defending he simply can't be in the conversation. Yea he's a much improved defender. But he still has a way to go. He'll improve though, and certainly has time on his side. But at this stage, right now. LeBron is a much better player

Durant is a really really really really good pure scorer.

Statistically, LeBron is pretty much only second to Jordan. LeBron is a once in a generation two-way player. I hate on him but he is just too damn good.